Ai: Ruins.1. One of the royal cities of the Canaanites
(Joshua 10:1; Genesis 12:8; 13:3)
It was the scene of Joshua's defeat, and afterwards of his
victory. It was the second Canaanite city taken by Israel
(Joshua 7:2-5; 8:1-29) It lay rebuilt and inhibited by the
Benjamites
(Ezra 2:28; Nehemiah 7:32; 11:31) It lay to the east of
Bethel, "beside Beth-aven." The spot which is most probably
the site of this ancient city is Haiyan, 2 miles east from
Bethel. It lay up the Wady Suweinit, a steep, rugged valley,
extending from the Jordan valley to Bethel.
2. A city in the Ammonite territory
(Jeremiah 49:3) Some have thought
that the proper reading of the word is Ar
(Isaiah 15:1)
